AllFreeNovel
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Too late.
His scent slides down my throat.
A thick, gooey hit of chocolate hazelnut, warm and rich, with a hint of buttered bread.
All my favorite flavors.
Boy-next-door on toast.
I wish I could disintegrate, but that would be too easy.
No.
I have to face him and pretend.
I have to face him, smile, and then give him away.
My scent glands bite, real pheromones rising like they’re begging me to tell the truth.
I fumble through a thousand practiced lies, a million ways to make him leave, but when I check my script, the lines are as blank as the numb hum muffling my head.
Past, present, even wearing my sister’s face.
Every role I’ve played.
Every me I’ve ever faked.
I always want Reese.
EARLIER…
I need to be on a date with the ice bath, resting my arm so I can convince Coach I’m not a total fuck-up waste of roster space.
Instead, I’m flat on the roof across from The Barrington, counting Redfangs through the sight of the sniper rifle that’s starting to feel more natural than my favorite glove.
Getting in game shape isn’t rocket sorcery.
All I have to do is sleep, stretch, stay in my lane, and stop running jobs for the mob.
But none of us has a choice with Kairo on our ass, so I always end up doing the dumbest possible shit for my janky Franken-shoulder.
My body is more like a stash house than a temple.
“How many?” Jin asks through my earpiece.
“Too many to do shit.” We were supposed to grab the omega before her auction. Then Redfangs fucking quintupled their security.
Now cartel soldiers choke the lobby like a concert crowd, wearing gangbanger suits instead of band merch.
I have zero beef with the Redfangs.
Least, I didn’t until this morning, when Bish and Jin dropped acid, claiming Serafina Redfang is our scent-matched mate.
“She’s moving,” Bishop’s voice goes stiffer than his starched pants.
I quit praying in grade school, after the fifth or fiftieth time I walked in on my parents hitting fent. The dude upstairs either doesn’t exist or he wants to fuck me up in particular.
Been fixing my own problems ever since.
